Concert Reviews

Although
the I-Rock Nightclub is just a mile or so down the road from Harpo's, it
is a better place to see a band. It is a smaller place, which means it
holds less people obviously, but this makes for a more
"intimate" and "personal" metal experience. And this
nightclub is laid out a bit weird. But best of all you can sneak your
camera inside! (Sshhh!! Don't tell anyone!)

There were three local Detroit bands opening for Moonspell and In
Flames tonight. THREE! Well, I HATE
opening bands. Why? Because I don't want to sit through boring and typical
death metal bands for three or four hours before I finally get to see the
main band, who usually goes on at fucken midnight, by which time I'm
frustrated, tired, hungry, and suffocating. My friend and I left late for
the show, in hopes of missing any opening bands including Moonspell. (Hey,
what can I say? Neither of us like Moonspell [Ed.
note: tsk, tsk...don't know what you're missing there Nathan!! Vocalist
Anders Friden is wearing a shirt that says "Lustmord" - a
Moonspell song ha!]). We arrived late, but just in time for
the first opening band! When we realized there were two more bands plus
Moonspell, we said "fuck it" and left. We took our time eating
dinner at a restaurant outside of Detroit. We got back just in time for
Moonspell's "Alma Mater", known to my friend and I as the
"Swedish Chef Song" for the operatic part that sounds like the
Muppet Show's Swedish Chef. It was rather funny to us (although I'm sure
some of you want to kick my ass right now). Although we're not into
Moonspell, they sounded great and put on an excellent show. They were full
of energy and very happy to be here tonight, and the crowd was very
pleased with their performance, which was good to see. You never know, I
could be kicking myself in the ass in the future when I finally get into
this band. This happened to me with At The Gates and Dissection. (I am
still pissed about that show back in '96).

The crowd waited anxiously for In Flames, as Ministry played over the
PA system. After "Jesus Built My Hotrod", on came
"Scarecrow", that long, monotonous, heavy ass hell song off
"Psalm 69". Soon I could hear one of the In Flames guitarists
off stage playing harmony guitar to the riffs in the song. This was rather
amusing. But finally the band hit the stage and that initial surge of
energy dissipated into the crowd and everyone just started
"rocking-out" to the heavy, melodic onslaught. Their set
consisted mostly of song off their latest album "Colony",
including the two 1999 renditions of "Behind Space" and
"Clad in
Shadows". Also included were select tunes off of "Whoracle",
"The Jester Race", and even "Stand Ablaze" off the
"Subterranean" EP. The band was full of energy, and so was the
crowd. Vocalist Anders Friden sounded and performed as good if not better
than on album. He was very enthused to be here tonight, and it showed.
Between songs he had on a big smile as he thanked the crowd frequently.
Bassist Peter Iwers was also full of energy as he thrashed back and forth
across the stage. Guitarist Jesper Stromblad riffed his ass off and was
totally metal tonight. And guitarist Bjorn Gelotte seemed to be totally
engulfed in the melodies and leads. Drummer Daniel Svensson must be an
android! After hearing his performance on "Colony", as well as
on Sacrilege's "Lost in the Beauty You Slay" and "The Fifth
Season", I was anxious to see how he performs. On album, he sounds
not only fluent, but also very consistent with his beats and with perfect
timing…as if he was an android. He was just as perfect live as on album.
Overall, In Flames' performance was top notch and one of the best I have
seen. The entire band was very happy to be playing tonight, and the crowd
loved every minute of their show. Let's hope they make it back here before
another four albums come out!